Bag closing apparatus



July 30, 1963 1.. H. PLATT, JR, ETAL 3,099,116

BAG CLOSING APPARATUS 4 SheetsS'neet 1 Filed Feb. 27, 1961 m y n pm w EM 2 P .w m b N x d a Z I I 1% f July 30, 1963 L. H. PLATT, JR, ETAL 3,099,115

BAG CLOSING APPARATUS Filed Feb. 27, 1961 3 4 Sheets-Sheet 2 I n l 5 LEA/9ND H, P2977, 72. 82 r 46 3 3 JOH/V 0 PLIQ'TT INVEIN TOR July 30, 1963 L. H. PLATT, JR., ETAL BAG CLOSING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Sheet 5 Filed Feb. 27. 1961 LELAND H. PLnrr, rife.

JOHN D. PLAT? INVENT0R5.

flrramvsys L. H. PLATT, JR., ETAL 3,099,116

' BAG CLOSING APPARATUS 4 Sheets-Shee't 4 Filed Feb. 2'7, 1961 LELAND 11. .PLHTT; ck.

tfOH/V D. PLHTT INVENTORS. 13m! flrroemeys.

United States Patent 3,099,116 BAG CLOSING APEARATUS Leland H. llatt, In, 4117 Don Ariano Drive, Los Angeles 8, Calif., and John D. Platt, 5912 Condon Ave, Los Angeles 56, Calif.

Filed Feb. 27, 1961, Ser. No. 91,831 7 Claims. (Cl. 53-138) This invention has to do generally with improvements in apparatus for automatically closing the necks of filled bags made of thin flexible materials such as any of filmlike plastics and for the bag packaging of fruits, vegetables, bakery products, and the like.

Particularly, the invention is concerned with equipment for automatically applying to a succession of open neck bags being fed to a closing station, individual closure elements fed successively to the closing station and apertured, or in effect apertured in accordance with any of various possible configurations, to receive the gathered bag necks. in certain of its important aspects, the invention aims to provide a novel and efiicient association at the bag closing station, of the closure elements in relation to a bag neck gathering mechanism which functions to advance and gather the bag into the element, all in a manner suited to high speed performance.

With the understanding that in its broader aspects the invention is applicable to the use of closing elements in any of various forms, for purposes of general terminology we may refer to them as clips, which terminology is a suitable designation of the illustrative kind of clip hereinafter described, and which has specific significances toward certain aspects of the invention. Preliminarily, the particular form of this clip may be characterized as an essentially flat flexible plastic piece apertured from one side to form an interiorly enlarging slot, the mouth of which passes the bag being gathered into the interior, and being so restricted as to retain the bag unless the clip is intentionally removed.

In its general mechanical and functional aspects, the invention contemplates a mode of operation whereby a succession of bags are continuously fed at predetermined intervals to the closing station, to and from which the clips are fed and released in timed relation with the bag travel, and the bag gathering mechanism and clips are so associated at that station as to cause the bag neck to be displaced and gathered into the clip. When using clips of the kind last mentioned, i.e. essentially flat clips with inwardly enlarging slots, the invention has a particular objective and contemplation in providing for displacement of the bag neck in gathering it in the clip slot without flexing or in any manner disturbing the clip. The latter requires flexing for removal and reapplication to the bag, but in the first instance it is caused to accommodate the gathered bag without flexure.

structurally, the invention contemplates a novel association of a gathering mechanism comprising a pair of rotating wheels having opposed peripheral surfaces which receive and advance the bag into a clip releasably positioned proximate the discharge side of the wheel surfaces so that the wheels can displace the thin flattened bag through an extremely narrow gap into the interior of the clip slot. As will appear, provision is made for feeding the clip successively to the closure station and for releasably arresting displacement of the clip while it is receiving the bag neck, all in timed relation with the bag feed.

Again, as applied to the use of clips formed to have side and edge configurations, the invention provides a novel clip feeding system according to which the clips are accommodated in a magazine in edge-to-edge relation, as distinguished from side stacking. This feed system provides a particular advantage where the clips are to be applied to bags lying on their sides, in that clips are re- 3,099,116 Patented July 30, 1963 ice ceived up-standing at the closure stations with their slots or openings facing the approaching bag neck, and thus are enabled simply and effectively to receive the bag material being advanced from the gathering mechanism.

The invention has various additional features and objects, all of which together with those outlined in the foregoing, will be more fully understood from the following detailed description of an illustrative embodiment shown by the accompanying drawings in which:

FIG. 1 is a plan view of the apparatus;

FIG. 2 is a enlarged fragmentary vertical section taken on line 2-2 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 3 is a section taken on broken line 3-3 .of FIG. 2;

FIG. 4 is a view showing the upper parts appearing in FIG. 2, in changed positions;

FIG. 5 is a enlargement of the clip feed magazine and associated gathering wheel's;

FIGS. 6 and 7 are cross-sections taken respectively on lines 6-6 and 7-7 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 8 is a view similar to FIG. 7 showing the parts in changed position;

FIG. 9 is a fragmentary section taken on line 99 of FIG. 5;

FIG. 10 is a fragmentary section taken on line Ill-10 of FIG. 5; and

FIG. 11 is a perspective showing a clip applied to a bag mouth.

Referring first to the plan view of FIG. 1, the apparatus may be described generally as comprising :a horizontally running conveyor means 12 operating to advance continuously a succession of bags 13 to a closure station at 14, to which the later described clips are fed from magazine 15 to receive the bag necks being advanced by the gathering mechanism 16. As will be understood, the diagrammatically illustrated bags 13 may be formed of very thin plastic or other highly flexible material. The filled bags are advanced lying on their sides, with open flexible ends of the bags projecting beyond one side of the conveyor 12 as shown in FIG. 1. At this point it may be mentioned that if desired, provision may be made for preliminarily extending or straightening out the open ends of the bags, as by a flexible paddle 17 driven by motor 18 or other suitable source, so that was the bag mouth is advanced beneath the paddle, the latter in rotating away from the bag tends to straighten out and condition the bag material for reception by the gathering mechanism 16.

The conveyor means '12 may be of any suitable kind capable of continuously advancing the bag preferably at predetermined, uniformly spaced intervals. Merely as illustrative, the conveyor is shown to comprise a stationary elongated table 20 having a longitudinal center slot 21 which receives the upper run of an endless chain 22 and suitable connectors 23 attaching the chain to uniforrnly spaced bars 24 which push the bags along the table surface as illustrated in FIG. 1. Chain 22 is carried by sprocket 25 on shaft 26 which is driven as will later appear. The body of the machine comprises a housing 28 within which is mounted a column 29 carried by shaft 30 and normally held in fixed position by bracket 31 having a bolt terminal 32 extending out through the housing 23. The column is swingable in a plane normal to the shaft 30 within a range permitted by slot 33 (see FIG. 2) through which the bolt terminal 32 extends, to vary the relative positions of the later described gathering wheels. Shaft 30 journaled in bearings 34- and 35 carries a fixed sprocket 36 driven by a belt or chain 37 from motor 38, and the shaft also carries a smaller sprocket 39 which drives sprocket 4-0 and the conveyor sprocket 25, through chain 41.

Referring now more particularly to the bag neck advancing and gathering mechanism generally indicated at 16, the latter comprises a pair of rotatable wheels 42 axially spaced apart at 43 to accommodate passage of the clips as later described, the wheels being rotatable on a shaft 44 extending through the housing 28 and supported at 45 within the column 29. The mechanism 16 also comprises a pair of lower wheels 46 similarly spaced apart at 47 and positioned respectively in peripheral contact with the upper wheels 42. All the wheels have frictional surfaces 42a and 46:: (see FIG. 9) for example of rubber, plastic or other suitable composition, which yieldably contact the bag material. Wheels 46 are fixed on shaft '50 journaled in the column-carried bearings 51 and having a terminal sprocket 52 driven by chain 53 from sprocket 54 on the shaft 30. The inner side of the table 12 is shown to mount a guide 55 having an angularly rising surface '56 and a continuing horizontal surface 57 over which the conveyor-advanced mouth portions of the bags 13 are guided into throat 48 between the wheels 42 and 46. The latter, rotating as the arrows indicated frictionally engage and advance the bag material in thin flattened condition into the clips as later described.

The clip feeding means 15 comprises a thin magazine 59 carried by support 60 and containing a channel 61 overlapped by side plates 62, the channel containing a series of the clips 63. The latter may have the form illustrated, in which each clip is made as a flat flexible plastic piece inwardly slotted from one side or end, the slot assembled consisting of an inwardly tapering throat at 64 and a restricted gap 65 leading into the enlarged terminal opening 66. As illustrated in FIG. '11, in the applied condition of the clip, the gathered bag neck at 13a is received within opening 66, unintentional release of the clip being prevented by the restriction at 65. The clip 63 may be removed from the bag by twisting in a manner to deflect the clip at opposite sides of the slot sufliciently to release the bag neck. But, as will appear, the bag is gathered into the slot without any flexing or deflection of the clip.

As illustrated in FIGS. and 9, the magazine 59 extends :down into the space at 43 between the wheels 42 to deposit the clip 63 from their stacked edge-to-edge series in the magazine, sequentially onto the guide surface 57 and into a slot '68 between a pair of plates 69 applied to the guide bar 55. The magazine assembly includes a top horizontal feed section generally indicated at 70 containing a channel 71 within which the flat-stacked clips 63 are pressed by spring 72 against a gate 73 reciprocable vertically within the channel 61 of the magazine 59. Gate 73 carries at its upper end a roller 74, see FIG. 4, the underside of which is engaged by a lever 75 pivoted at 76 on a stationary support 77. Coil spring 78 connecting the shaft of roller 74 with an anchorage at 79 urges the gate 73 downwardly to exent pressure on the clip series of the magazine 59. The outer end of lever 75 is connected at 80 to a link 81 which has an adjustable connection at 81a with arm 82 carrying a terminal clip stop lug 83. Arm 82 has an extension 84 having a fixed adjustable connection at 85 with arm 86 carrying a lug 87 which is engageable by 'a roller 88, the shaft 89 of which is carried by sprocket 40 and is adjustable in its arcuate slot 90. Shaft 85 also carries an arm 95 on gageable downwardly against stop 96 under the influence of coil spring 97 in the FIG. 2 position of the parts Referring to FIG. 5, the arm 82 and stop lug 83 are swingable between the solid and broken line positions, in the former of which the stop is engageable by a clip positioned, as illustrated, on the guide surface 57, to prevent ejecting displacement of the clip under the influence of the bag material 30 gathered into the clip slot. The lug 83 is displaceable into and out of clip blocking positions in timed relation with the bag feed. Bars 24, and therefore the bags 13, being uniformly spaced, and this spacing being properly related to one complete rotation of sprocket 40 and roller 88, the latter is caused to engage lug 87 to displace arm 86 upwardly upon each revolution, thus simultaneously swinging lug 83 to the FIG. 4 clip ejecting or clearing position, and through link 81 and lever 75, raising the gate 73 to pass a clip from the horizontal magazine 17 into the channel of the vertical magazine 59, all as illustrated by FIGS. 6 to 8. As will be apparent, spring 78 serves both to return the gate 73 to the FIG. 7 closed position and to raise lug 83 from the FIG. 4 to the FIG. 5 stop position, each time roller 88 passes the lug 87.

In considering the operation of the machine, assume the parts to be in the FIG. 2 condition with a bag 13 being advanced over the guide surface 57 into the wheel throat 48 as shown in FIG. 5. Upon contacting the opposed wheel surfaces 42a, 46a, the latter advance the flattened bag material between them into the clip opening 66, and the wheels perform the function of gathering the bag material completely into the clip opening because the clip is held stationary until it fully receives the gathered bag neck. The timing of the roller 88 rotation in relation to the bag feed is such that immediately thereafter, lug 83 is dropped to the FIG. 5 release position which permits the conveyor means to advance the clipped bag away from the gathering station and to ultimate ejection from the conveyor. With each clip ejection, as described, gate 73 is raised to permit reception of one of the horizontal stacked clips into magazine 59, whereupon the gate closes down to exert suflicient pressure on the Vertical clip series as to assure immediate positioning of the lowermost clip 'on the surface 57, in keeping with the desired high speed capacity of the machine.

We claim:

1. Flexible bag closing apparatus comprising,

(A) means for continuously advancing a succession of bags to a closing station,

z(B) means for feeding and advancing to said station a succession of fasteners individually applicable to the bags and apertured to receive the bag necks, each fastener aperture being essentially of slot formation having an enlarged interior and an open mouth so narrow that a gathered bag neck is completely confinable in said interior,

(0) continuously moving power driven means operable at said station for gathering each bag neck into a respective fastener aperture, said gathering means presenting a pair of rotating surfaces positioned so close together as to flatten the bag material and pass it in flattened condition through the narrowed fastener mouth, whereby the bag neck is gathered and retained in said aperture independently of any deformation of the fastener, and

(D) means controlling said feed of the fasteners in timed relation wtih the arrival of the bags at said station.

2. Apparatus according to claim I1, in which said sur faces are the peripheral surfaces of a pair of wheels at least one of which is rotatably driven.

3. Apparatus according to claim 2, in which said fasteners are slotted plastic clips and said feed means comprises means for feeding successive clips to a location at which their apertures receive the flattened bag material immediately upon its passage from between said surfaces.

4. Flexible bag closing apparatus comprising,

(A) means for continuously advancing a succession of bags to a closing station,

(B) a pair of wheels positioned at said station to receive and advance the bag necks between them, said wheels being such close peripheral proximity as to flatten the bag material,

(C) means for feeding in timed relation wtih said advancing means a succession of preformed slotted fastener clips to a location at said station where the flattened bag material passes from between said wheels with the clip slots positioned to receive and gather the flattened material, and

'(D) means for releasing the clips and associated bags from said station.

5. Apparatus according to claim 4, comprising means for guiding and feeding said clips in a path extending oppositely across one of the wheels.

6. Apparatus according to claim 4, in which said wheels are provided in pairs, individually coaxial, and said clips are fed between one of said pairs.

7. Apparatus according to claim 6, in which said clips are flat plastic elements and the apparatus comprises means for guiding and feeding said elements to said location in edge to edge engagement with their slots facing the bag material discharge side of the wheels.

References Cited in the file of this patent UNITED STATES PATENTS Stamde May 1, 1906 Hamer Aug. 25, 1925 Paxton Mar. 29, 1955 Palmor May 5, 1959 Kelem Feb. 28, 1961 Notice of Adverse Decision in Interference In Interference No. 93,877 involving Patent No. 3,099,116, L. H. Platt, J1'., and J. D. Plath, BAG CLOSING APPARATUS, final judgment adverse to the patentees was rendered June 25, 1965, as to claims 1, 2, 3, 4 and 6.

[Ofioz'al Gazette September 28, 1.965.] 

1. FLEXIBL BAG CLOSING APPARATUS COMPRISING; (A) MEANS FOR CONTINUOUSLY ADVANCING A SUCCESSION OF BAGS TO A CLOSING STATION, (B) MEANS FOR FEEDING AND ADVANCING TO SAID STATION A SUCCESSION OF FASTENERS INDIVIDUALLY APPLICABLE TO THE BAGS AND APERTURED TO RECEIVE THE BAG NECKS, EACH FASTENER APERTURE BEING ESSENTIALLY OF SLOT FORMATION HAVING AN ENLARGED INTERIOR AND AN OPEN MOUTH SO NARROW THAT A GATHERED BAG NECK I S COMPLETELY CONFINABLE IN SAID INTERIOR. 